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Dog Breed's Main Info

Eduard Karel Korthals is credited with the breed around 1873. Korthals' dream was to create the ideal versatile gun dog; one with extreme resiliency, vigor, and devotion to its master. The dog would also have to work close to its master, and be open to training.

Korthals' breeding line began in 1874 with "Mouche", who would be used as its foundation bitch, as well as five other dogs described as "Griffons": Janus, Satan, Banco, Hector, and Junon. He interbred the dogs carefully until offspring were produced that resembled his idea of an ultimate hunting dog.

In any event, the resulting offspring (Moustache I, Lina, and Querida) are referred to as the "Korthals Patriarchs" because they are the Griffon's direct ancestors. In 1888 the first "griffon club" was formed as an international organization with local clubs in Bavaria "Souther German Griffon Clue" in 1895, in Belgium the "Royal Belgium Griffon Club" (1895) in France "French Wirehaired Griffon Club (1901) soon followed.

The American Kennel Club's first registered Korthals Griffons (called Wirehaired Pointing Griffon in the USA) was "Zolette", who was entered into the stud book in 1887. However, the Griffon was still relatively unknown, and she was registered as a "Russian Setter (Griffon)" for her presumed Russian heritage.

It was not until 1916, twenty-nine years later, that the breed was officially recognized as the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon in the United States. In that same year, sixteen Griffons appeared in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, one of the most prestigious shows in the country.

Since then, the breed has grown in popularity as not only a show dog but also a versatile gun dog, Korthals' original intention for the breed. For the most part, the breed still resembles his original intentions: a medium size, harsh coat, good degree of trainability, and resilient on the field and in the ring.